Chapter 7

Axel’s POV

This place suddenly looks like it will be much more fun than I initially thought. That girl was something else, even though she looked terrified of us. It’s now my mission to get to know her, get her to let us in.

We have been together every day since the day we were born. So, it doesn’t surprise me that we all end up drawn to the same girl. It’s odd, though. She hasn’t reached her full wolf yet; this has never happened before, well, not that I know of anyway. Usually, you can only feel the pull of another wolf once they have shifted and gone through the change at least once, and I know she hasn’t. I can smell it.

I wish she hadn’t rushed off like she had. She’s the only one I want to spend my time with now. I’m sure the rest of these people are great, but once you smell a scent like that and get dragged by the pull to another, it’s hard to wanna do anything else.

That Mason guy is getting on my nerves, he’s so up himself; it’s almost embarrassing. My brothers seem to be dealing with his pompousness better than I am.

“Mason, could you please go and check on Ayla, make sure she’s feeling okay,” Alpha Michael asks his son.

I felt a pang of jealousy, knowing he would see her, and I wasn’t. I sense my brothers feel the same.

Moments after arriving, we were ushered into a large dining room, and loads of tables were pushed around the room’s edges. Each one is topped with fantastic-looking food. It seems they have put on a buffet feast for us.

More people have begun to arrive. I guess this will turn into a welcome party. Usually, I’d be all over it, but today there was only one place I wanted to be.

We make our way around the newcomers and introduce ourselves. My anxiety rises; Mason has been gone way too long for my liking.

As if he knew I was wondering where he was, he appeared in the doorway. He smelt like her, but it smelt wrong. It wasn’t as sweet as before.

Aiden and Archer smelt it too. Aiden frowns; he looks concerned and makes his way to me.

“Do you smell that?” barely a whisper, but I hear him clearly

“Yes,” I answer simply

“It’s fear mixed with her scent, isn’t it” he clarifies my worries.

“Possibly, yeah,” I agree.

“I think we are going to need to watch that one,” he says; I hear a low rumble from his throat. He was mad.

Archer joins us; he’s just as wound up.

“Tell me I’m not the only one that can feel that,” he grumbled. It wasn’t like Archer to be pissed off.

“We need to find out what’s going on, and if she’s okay, there’s something about that guy I just don’t like,” Aiden states.

“It’s not like we can walk up there. This whole thing is because of us, so we can’t just leave” Aiden almost snaps; it’s bothering him.

“Calm down, brother,” Archer says. “How about one of us ask to be shown to our room? That way, we can see if we can work out where she is, at least,” he suggests.

“Sounds like a plan, but which one of us,” I ask.

“I’ll go; I wanna change anyway; this shirt is doing my head in,” Aiden added.

“Fine, but don’t take forever, your better at talking to these people than us,” I tell him.

Aiden’s POV

Something didn’t feel right. It was bad enough to glimpse Ayla, but to smell her scent was wrong on that guy, Mason, pushing me over the edge. My brothers felt the same. We had to find out what was going on.

“Excuse me, could you please show me to my room? I need to change after that long drive,” I ask a passing maid, she seems taken aback by me, but I shrug it off. It was the reaction I seemed to get from most women.

We made our way back through the foyer, Ayla’s scent was still quite strong here, but it was fading fast. I was led up a set of stairs off to the right, assuming this was heading to the guest wing. It didn’t take long until I was shown to my room; my brothers were next to me.

Quickly, I rip off my shirt and pull out a dark grey t-shirt from my bag. I quietly edged out of my room, waiting a moment to make sure the maid had left. I sniff; her scent is weak here. There was nothing else for it. I had to go sniff her out.

Walking along the corridors of the guest wing, I lost her scent completely; I needed to change directions. If anyone caught me, I would look very dodgy, walking around sniffing everything.

Making my way back to the landing above the foyer, I catch her scent again, and I follow it around and up another set of stairs.

It’s powerful here, almost overpowering; I could smell Mason’s scent, too; I was not too fond of that. I slow my pace and listen, hearing soft sobs; my heart breaks; I’m sure it’s her. Creeping slowly forward, I find the door she’s behind. I listen to her clearer now and smell her too. It was mouth-watering, but I couldn’t enjoy it, not when I could hear her softly cry.

Placing my hand on her door, I wanted to check on her, but what would I say. I wasn’t even meant to be in this part of the house. It’s on the opposite end to the guest rooms.

I hear her get up and move. Then the sound of the bed. She had gotten in. I waited and listened for a while; it wasn’t long before I heard her breathing change; she was asleep.

Once I was back in the dining room with my brothers, I told them what I had heard. We would have to be satisfied with that for tonight. We will make sure we see her tomorrow.

Ayla’s POV

Someone’s outside my room; I can hear them. Well, I heard them walk past my door and then stop. It’s not Mason; he would have just barged in. I take a deep breath, but I can’t smell a lot. My nose was blocked from all the crying.

“I have to start locking my door,” I think, seriously meaning It.

My head was pounding. Dragging myself up, I shuffle over to my bed, not even bothering to get changed. I climb in and snuggle under my blanket. It took me no time at all to fall asleep.

Morning came way too quickly. I woke with my head still banging. It was like a nasty hangover without the drink.

My body went into auto pilot. I rolled out of bed, brushed my teeth and hair, and threw on clean clothes. Pulling my hair into a high ponytail, I sighed. I found my old trainers and stuffed my feet into them. Grabbing my bag for school, I shut the door and trudged down the stairs.

It took me a few minutes to remember we had guests, hence the extra business going on around here.

“Shit!” I inwardly moan.

I entirely forgot about the God-like guys from last night. Mason must have rattled my brain good to forget about them. Once again, I looked like crap, with no makeup and old clothes.

“Maybe I could rush back upstairs and change and do my face,” I ponder, but it is too late.

“Good morning, Ayla!” Michael smiled at me. “Are you feeling any better?”

I nod, but I didn’t feel very smiley today.

“We have another guest I would like you to meet,” Michael said as he gently guided me into the dining room, his hand on the small of my back.

All the tables were back as before, and the room was how it usually was. There was no evidence of any party taking place last night. I was gutted to have missed it.

Sat next to Mason was a tall but lean guy. What struck me the most was that his hair was the same colour as mine. I stared at him. Unable to take my eyes off of him. Not in the same way as the Godly trio, but in a what the heck kind of way.

“This is Tristan,” Michael indicated to the newcomer.

“Hi,” he muttered back without looking up.

“Tristan, this is Ayla” Michael controlled his voice, but I knew he wasn’t happy with the rudeness Tristan had just shown me.

Tristan turned his head to look at me, boredom etched on his face. He was about to look away when he did a quick double-take. He was just as shocked as I to see someone like him here in Winter Moon territory.

Michael looked at me, then at him. We were both frowning at each other. We must have looked weird; it even made me feel awkward.

“Yes, well, now all the introductions have been made, I’ll leave you to it” Michael turned to leave.

“Oh, Mason, Ayla, our four guests will be attending the pack school and university while they are with us; make sure you show them around and make them feel welcome,” he said. But it was more like an order.

Losing my appetite, I left, rummaging in my bag and looking for my car keys as I walked to the front door. When I was hit by a solid wall of…. Something.

“Whoa there,” his voice wrapped around me like silk and was as smooth as velvet. I felt my body shiver.

Tentatively I looked up. His hands were on my shoulders, steadying me. I had walked square into Aiden. I couldn’t believe it. My face flamed red instantly.

I felt a tiny squeeze from one of his giant hands. I had to remind myself to breathe.

“Ayla isn’t it” he smiles at me.

“Y-yeah, that’s me,” I manage to say. Well, I’m doing better this time than last night in the talking department.

Still, his hands are on me.

“Are you feeling better?” he asked, genuine concern lacing his voice.

“Yes, thank you, my head still hurts a bit, though, but I’m okay,” I answer truthfully, as it was still sore where Mason had smashed it off the wall.

We were joined by his two brothers then. The smell of them all together was almost too much. I swayed slightly. Thank the Goddess Aiden still had hold of me, or I would have gone down.

“Whoa, steady there, Miss,” he breathed close to me. I’m sure he must have known what he was doing to me and was enjoying it too.

“I hear we are coming to school with you,” he stated.

“I’m in my last year of high school – it was the sixth form, really, but it was generally easier to just call it high school – I’m pretty sure you will be going to the university with Mason,” I tell him, I’m sure I saw all three of their faces scrunch up.

He turned to his brothers, impossibly quiet; I couldn’t make it out, so he had a quick conversation with them. When he turned back to me, Axel was on the phone with someone and spoke with quite a lot of authority.

Aiden pulled my attention back to him. He removed one hand from my shoulders, but the other stayed where it was. Not in a threatening way, but more of a protective one.

“Looks like it will be the high school we visit after all,” Axel grins at me.

Butterflies swarm in my belly. What was I going to do with these three around me all day?

“There are enough of us from visiting territories going to the university. They want some of us to go to the high school; it looks like you stuck with us” he winks at me again.

Oh hell, I’m in trouble now!